Governing mechanism



Marh19, 1940. J ,1 H555 f f 2,194,166

GOVERNING MECHANI Sll Filed Nov. 2, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 E -Wilstmgmn W I TNESSES: l N V EN TOR:

March 19, 1940.

J. vA. HEss GOVERNING MEHANISM Filed Nov. 2, 1938 HG. JI.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.l

Jbhn 2772.545

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ATTORNEYS.

Patentedy Mar. 19, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFlcs GovERNiNu MEonANlsM Jorma Hess, columbus, ohio Application November 2, 1938, Serial No. 238,298

2 claims. (o1. 264;-15)

be apparent from, or particularly noted in, the

This invention relates to governor mechanism,

and, more particularly, to the type responsive to speed variations of a centrifugal device adapted to control the admission of motive medium to turbo-generator units.

Mechanism of the indicated kind usually comprise a governor device and a pivoted lever arm influenced bythe speed of the turbine shaft,y

for effecting variable actuation of a vsuitable valve ycontrolling supply of motive medium to the turbine, said lever including a removable and durable contact member engaging the shaft at one end. In the assembly oi the rotary parts of such mechanism, the spring is often not denitely located with respect to the governor shaft and the surrounding surfaces. As a result, such spring vis liable to irictionally engage the governor stem or surrounding surfaces and thereby cause objectionable interference with proper functioning of the governor, as well as unnecessary wear of said parts. yIn addition, the motion of the governor is often transmitted to the lever arm aforesaid by aid of a rotatable ball mounted in said arm which contacts the governor stem confronting end, and in. order that such parts may coact satisfactorily, said ball must be accurately eentered in respect to the axis ci said stem, thereby involving skill. and great care in assembling, otherwisev operating trouble frequently arises at this point due to misalignment of such parts. vFur- I thermore, the regulating action of the lever arm is ordinarily communicated to the motive fluid valve stemvbya yoke-connection at the end of said lever arm, remote from its pivot,` and any sidewise or vibratory motion thereat causes undesirable wear with a co-related effect upon'the valve movable member relative to its body portion.

' The primary object of the present invention is to eliminate `the foregoing'disadvantages by provision, lin combination with governing mechanismof the kind referred to, of an improved lever arm construction 'including novel contact means; alsoby denitely locating the governor spring so that it is positively prevented from rubbing adjacent inner and outer surfaces, thereby practically eliminating wear and ensuring more sensitive action than heretofore obtainable in a sim- Other objectsand attendant advantages. Will followingdetailed description of a typical errrbodiment oi the invention; as illustrated bythe accompanying drawings; while the concluding claims more specically dene the novel features of said invention.

In the drawings, like characters of reference are applied to corresponding parts in all the views.l v y Fig. I is a perspective view looking toward the governing mechanism outer end of a turbogenerator embodying the present improvements', and with the associated cover in open position to better illustrate otherwise hidden structure.

Fig. II is a ysectional illustration taken longit tudinally through the governing mechanism with a broken portion of the casing and cover.

Fig. III is a vertical section on the planerIIL- III of Fig. II with a retainer member or packl ing-gland cover removed.

I tive uid supply valve and lever arm heating Contact.

Fig. VI is an enlarged perspective View ofthe governor valve yoke housing for the floating conn tact of Fig. V; and,

Fig. VII is a perspective View of the governor stem. v f

Referring more in detail to Figs. I and II of the drawings, the governor portion of a standard type of turbo-,generator unit for locomotive headlights is comprehensively designated l, the

saine including a casing 2, end cover 3, motive fluid supply valve Il, and a rotary bearing 5 which is suitably enlarged to form a weight driving ro: tor frame and in which one end of the turbogenerator or unit armature-shaft t is'xed; said bearing 5 also affording support at 'l for the centrifugal governor elements l', all in accordance with known art andforming no part o the present improvements.

In accordance with this invention, the adjustable member 8 of the governor casing 9 is preferably made of greater inside and outside diameters, than at present prevailing, to afford an increased clearance or bore iii for the spring Il', and said member is formed at the bottom of the bore lli with an annular groove l2 into which the adjoining end of the spring il fits, thus definitely positioning the latter thereat in respect to the governor stem I3. The governor stem i3, asbest shown in Fig. VII, embodies a plain shank portion lll, 'a shoulder l5- adjoinng the head IE for denite location of the adjoining end of the spring i l, and a slightly reduced shank extension il having a surrounding spiral groove I8, for a purpose hereinafter considered. Now it will be readily seen that by sustaining the spring Ii intermediate the groove I2 and shoulder I5, as well as by provision of the larger' clearance bore I 0, said spring is so held at all times as to clear the stem I3 and governor casing member 8, both interiorly and exteriorly, thereby eliminating frictional wear and ensuring more sensitive governor regulation.

Pivotally suspended by its upper forked end I9, from an adjusted member 2i) securable by a set-screw ZI and carried by the projection 22 in the unit casing 2, is a lever arm 23 having at a predetermined intermediate position a screwthreaded hole 24, through the outer end of a recess 25, and in which engages an adjusting member or screw 26 with its inner end axially bored at 21 for reception of a circumierentially anged fibrous material plug or insert 23 for continuous contact with the confronting convexed end 29 oi the governor stem extension Il. It is to be observed the adjusted screw 2G is provided with a lock-nut 30; also that the lever arm recess 25 is formed with inwardly-opposing lugs 3| aiording attachment, as by screws 32, for a packing retainer-gland 3. The packing 34 preierably comprises continuous wick, some of which may be in direct communication with an oil cavity 35, formed in the lower medial part of the lever arm 23 and having an associated filler connection 36, so that the surface of the fibrous plug 28, contacting with the governor stem end 29, is constantly maintained thoroughly lubricated by capillary attraction, in an obvious manner. It is furthermore noteworthy that by spiralizing the groove I8 in a reverse direction to thel normal rotation of the governor-stein I3, said groove will function to prevent creepagel and seepage of lubricant outwardly from the packing 34, in addition to feeding it back again to the contacting surfaces aforesaid. Also it is to ce borne in mind the lever recess 25 may be packed with suitable fibrous material gaskets not needing lubricating oil for their eiicient use, or in other words the ller connection may be dispensed with or not used. Referring now to the operative connection between the lever arm 23 and the motive fluid supply valve 4. the lower end or tongue portion 3l' of said arm is appropriately shaped for coaction between the opposing elliptic-section parts 38 of a yoke 39, having an internally screw-threaded section 4i) at one end adapted for adjustable and rigid attachment to the correspondingly threaded end of the inwardly-inuenced fluid supply valve stem 4I, for example as by a suitable cotter device 42. It is also to be seen yoke 39 at its other end is interiorly screw-threaded for reception of a hollow cap 43 having a concaved axial recess 44 affording bearing for the outer convexed end 45 of a iioating contact member 45. This floating member 46, as best seen in Fig. V, preferably embodies axiallyaligned opposedly directed stud-like portions 41, 48, respectively. of differential diameters, and an intermediate collar section 49. The stud part 4'! embodies the hemispherically convexed end 45 engageable in the concaved re-v cess 44 of the cap 43, and the part 48 freely passes through an axial aperture in the yoke 39, and has a convexed end 5I of greater curvature than the end 45 for contact with the tongue portion or lower end 31 of the lever arm 23. Thus it will be readily understood that the inner end or stud part 48 of the floating member 46 is free to move laterally within certain limits. defined by the dia-meter of the aperture 5U, hence a reasonable amount of sidewise vibration of` the lever arm 23 can be absorbed without appreciable wear and without transmission of such vibrations to the valve piston stem 4I. Furthermore, by the improved coactive relation of the adjuster member or screw 26, iiber contact 28 and lock nut 30, it will be obvious that slight final voltage adjustments of the generator armatureshaft 6 may be made while the turbo-generator is running; and that the fluid supply valve stem 4I being inwardly influenced, maintains the lever plug or insert 28 in continuous contact with the governor stem I3 while the mechanism is operating.

Frein the foregoing description the operation of the governing mechanism disclosed will bc self-evident, and it is to be remarked the iniproved construction of the lever arm 23 and associated parts render said mechanism lar more sensitive and accurate in operation, while the disadvantage arising from vibre-.tory 'transmission prevalent in previous mechanisms, of similar na.- ture, are eliminated. and the necessity for frequent renewals or local adjustments of the operatively coasting parts is likewise dispensed with.

Furthermore, it will be apparent the mechanism described fully justifies the objects stated in the opening paragraphs of this specification; and while a preferred embodiment has been disclosed it is to be understood that detail changes and variations in adapting the invention to other forms of governing mechanism than the specic type referred to are included herein.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

l. In governing mechanism including a rotary member and casing revolvable with and actuated by speed responsive mechanism, said member being adapted for axial movement in opposition to a yieldable spring opposing axial movement of the rotary member and a pivoted lever coactive with said member to actuate an associated power control, the combination of means definitely sustaining the reactive element with operative clearance against engaging the rotary member and its casing, means for supplying lubricant to the lever engaging end of the rotary member. a spiral groove around part of` the rotary member effective to return lubricant to its lever engaging end, and an adjustable non-metallic element carried by the pivoted lever for coactive contact with the rotary member adjoining end.

2. In governing mechanism including a rotary member and casing revolvable with and actuated by speed responsive mechanism, said member being adapted for axial movement in opposition to a yieldable spring opposing axial movement thereof; the combination oi a pivoted lever coactive with said member to actuatc an associated power control; said lever being formed with a cavity for lubricating medium and into which the rotary member projects; and the rotary meniber has its aligning adjacent portion formed with a spiral groove, the direction of which is rcversed in respect to the normal rotative direction of said member; whereby the lubricating medium is prevented from seepage out of and yis effectively returned to the pivoted lever cavity.

JOHN A. HESS` 

